A Place to Land

Jimi

"Still trying to find a place to land"

After we finished up at the studio Phillip and I decided to go to get a drink before heading home. We invited Kimberly and Karen, but they decided to pass. Before we left I pulled Karen aside. I'm a little worried about her after our talk about Mark this morning outside.

"You good?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Mark said he's going to be late again so I don't have to deal with his crappy attitude" she said.

"I'm sorry things are a little rough right now, but if I know you two, you'll be fine" I said and gave her a hug.

"Thanks Jimi" she said and then left.

Phillip and I headed to the bar down the street. We parked our cars right next to each other and walked in the bar. We scoped the place out for a table or some stools at the bar. We found a few spots at the bar and walked up. There was a guy sitting there that looked strangely familiar. As we got closer, I realized I knew who it was. Mark, and he wasn't there by himself. He was sitting next to a young blonde and they weren't there as friends. He was sitting really close to her and had his hand resting on her upper thigh and kissed her cheek.

"Is that Mark?" Phillip asked as we approached the bar.

"Yeah, it is" I said annoyed.

"Do you think he's here with her?" he asked.

"Yeah, unfortunately" I said and we sat down two stools down from Mark. I plan to confront him about what the hell is going on here.

A bartender approached Phillip and I and we ordered our drinks. Mark glanced over at us and back to the woman he was here with, but then shot another look at us when he realized he knew who we were. We made eye contact and he had a look of fear in his eyes.

He turned to her and said something to her in her ear then scooted down to the stool right next to me.

"Hey Mark. What are you doing?" I asked in an annoyed tone.

"Getting a drink" he said.

"With another woman who isn't your wife" I said.

"She's just a friend" he said trying to defend himself.

"Do you always put your hands on your friend's thighs and kiss their cheeks?" I asked. He sat there in silence because he knows he has been caught.

"So, who is she?" I asked.

"Her name is Jackie. She's one of Carrie's backup singers" he said.

"You finished that album didn't you?" I asked.

"Yeah, a week and a half ago" he said and looked at the ground. We sat there in silence and I took a sip of my drink.

"Please don't tell Karen" he begged.

"What?" I asked angrily.

"This wasn't supposed to go on this long" he said.

"And you think that, that makes what you are doing to Karen okay?" I asked just as angry.

"You know, Karen loves you with all her heart and this is how you treat her? And whatever happens between the two of you, I'm on her side" I said and stood up. Phillip and I paid for our drinks and left. Before Phillip and I left, he stopped me.

"Are we going to tell Karen?" he asked.

"I have no idea. I feel like we should, but I don't want to hurt her" I said.